At Berkenbosch Blokstraat 9a, 2586 HD Scheveningen, there is a Lourdes grotto that can be visited daily. People come here to visit Mary, light a candle, pray in silence and/or reflect in the presence of Mary. The chapel with the grotto is a place for the veneration of Mary.
The Lourdes grotto was created in 1913 and stands in front of the Church of Our Lady of Lourdes, which closed in 2005. In the chapel, behind the altar, the Lourdes grotto is situated. The grotto is a replica, at a scale of 1:13, of the one in Lourdes in the south of France. The Lourdes grotto and the statue of Mary in the niche are designs by Leo (Johannes Paulus) Stracké (1851-1923), who was a sculptor, copper engraver, and restorer. The architect of the chapel, which is constructed with brick, was Co (Alexander Jacobus) Kropholler (1881-1973). The pews are also original designs by him. The chapel is a national monument.
Beneath the statue of Our Lady of Lourdes is a small stone from the cave of Lourdes in the south of France. On the front of the altar table is a gilded relief. This depicts the apparition of Mary to Bernadette Soubirous (1844-1879) in Lourdes, France, in 1858.
At the back of the chapel, opposite the grotto, there are statues and banners hanging. Also displayed there is a large mural of the coronation of Mary in heaven. The artwork is by Toon (Antonius Cornelis) Ninaber van Eyben (1896-1977). This versatile artist was a stained-glass artist, engraver, mosaic artist, painter, and draftsman.
At the back of the chapel stands a white, standing effigy of Mary. This statue was made in 1954 by sculptor and furniture designer Jo (Johannes Wilhelmus) Uiterwaal (1897-1972). The statue of Mary is a donation and therefore present in the chapel, and it was consecrated on 8 December 1954.
Terracotta tiles, donated by the faithful in gratitude, are affixed to the side walls. A poem and a litany of Mary have been applied to the walls.
As there is no statue of Bernadette Soubirous at the grotto, beneath the statue of Mary, it is not effectively a Lourdes grotto, but rather a Marian grotto.
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